Characteristics
Since the 17th century, the army of Brandenburg-Prussia was characterized by its initiative, maneuverability, and aggressive command at the operational level of war. The Hohenzollern state often had fewer resources and manpower than its rivals, and thus the Prussians focused on quickly achieving a decisive victory to avoid a war of attrition. The Prussians practiced what became known as Bewegungskrieg, or war of movement, in an attempt to strike at the flanks or rear of the enemy. The Prussian emphasis on decisive battles instead of wars of attrition led to its being inexperienced in siege warfare, at which the Prussians have been considered incompetent.
The Great Elector practiced many of the concepts applied to the Prussian Army in later centuries, including flank attacks at Warsaw and, at Fehrbellin, the willingness to attack when outnumbered. The elector advocated campaigns that were "short and lively".
During the 1740s, Frederick the Great issued a series of new regulations and documents regarding his army's experiences during the first two Silesian wars and how they would relate to future wars. The doctrines he espoused focused on speed and offense. Lighter and faster cavalry were preferred over heavy cavalry; while hussars were treated as luxury troops by Frederick William I, his son made them an integral part of the army. The artillery was to use light three-pound guns which made up for their lack of power with versatility. After being outmaneuvered by the Austrians in the Second Silesian War, Frederick began emphasizing an overwhelming attack instead of a war of attrition. Rather than frontal attacks, the Prussian king tried to apply the oblique order, by which his army's strongest wing was focused against the enemy's weakest wing or flank, while restraining his own weaker wing. Frederick the Great summed up the Prussian style of war at Leuthen, advocating an attack on the enemy "even if he should be on top of the Zobtenberg".
The Prussian emphasis on attack was well-ingrained in its officer corps. Flies unsuccessfully went on the offensive in the Battle of Langensalza, despite being outnumbered by the Hanoverians and having Falckenstein's troops nearby. Similarly, Kirchbach was willing to endure excessive casualties at Wörth without waiting for reinforcements. Moltke wanted a quick campaign in Bohemia against Austria so that Russia or France would not become involved in the Austro-Prussian war. Although Moltke considered Prince Frederick Charles' march through Bohemia to be too slow, Hans Delbrück found the "Red Prince's" eventual attack at Königgrätz to have been in the Prussian tradition, "which, by daring to lose a battle, wins it".
The Prussian-style war of movement and quick strikes was well-designed for campaigns using the developed infrastructure of Western and Central Europe, such as the wars of unification, but failed when it was applied by the Wehrmacht Heer to the Soviet Union and Northern Africa. The Prussian and later German systems were weak regarding intelligence, counterintelligence, and logistics. If the enemy successfully endured the initial operational attacks, the Prussian system had great difficulty in Stellungskrieg, or war of position.
The Prussian Army is often considered to have used the flexible command of Auftragstaktik (mission tactics), by which subordinate officers led using personal initiative. This developed out of the relationship between the Junker aristocracy, who made up most of the officer corps, and the monarchy. In return for political support from the nobles, the monarchs granted them greater privileges on their estates and greater initiative on the battlefield. According to the theory of Auftragstaktik, the commander would issue a mission to his subordinate officers, who were to pursue the directive as they saw fit. Gneisenau was an early proponent of Auftragstaktik, and Moltke interpreted the theory as "the higher the authority, the shorter and more general" the orders; considerable leeway was granted to subordinates in order to pursue the goal. 19th-century historians saw Leuthen as one of the best examples of Auftragstaktik and an early example of combined arms.
Often stereotypically associated with the Prussian Army was the Pickelhaube, or spiked helmet, in use in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Victorious battles were celebrated through military marches, such as the "Hohenfriedberger Marsch", allegedly written by Frederick the Great after Hohenfriedberg, and the "Königgrätzer Marsch", by the march composer Piefke. The Prussian Großer Zapfenstreich military tattoo is still in use by the modern Bundeswehr. The Iron Cross was adopted by the German Empire and its successor states, and is also still used as a symbol of the Bundeswehr. Voltaire said about the Prussian army, "Whereas some states possess an army, the Prussian army possess a state."
Read more about this topic: Prussian Army